In addition to its main stage shows, the New Britain Symphony will be offering a free mini-concert series that showcases orchestra musicians in smaller, more intimate settings. Seven ensembles will be presented in small venues such as libraries, churches, and museums in New Britain, Berlin, and Plainville. At these concerts, the musicians perform and engage the audiences in dialogue about music and the instruments of the orchestra, providing unique musical experiences for all ages. Programs for this year’s series include a Beatles string quartet, the annual brass quintet and pipe organ, and a steel drum ensemble.

The dates, locations, programs and performers are as follows:GUITAR & FLUTE DUO Tuesday, October 18, 2016, 6:30 p.m. Plainville Public Library
Americas Ensemble – A Latin-inspired presentation featuring new and traditional music that will evoke the mysteries and power of the ancient civilizations of the Americas.

Daniel Salazar – Guitar
Gonzalo Cortes – Flute

BEATLES STRING QUARTETWednesday, November 2, 2016, 6:30 p.m. Peck Memorial Library, Berlin
The songs of the Beatles are considered to be music reflecting the desires of a generation that continues to inspire. This performance of Beatles music will be performed in special arrangements for string quartet by the NBSO’s own Fab Four.

BRASS QUINTET & PIPE ORGAN Sunday, December 4, 2016, 3:00 p.m. St. Mark’s Episcopal Church, New Britain
The brilliance of brass instruments and the majestic sounds of the pipe organ combine to signal the start of the season of light.

Reese Farnell – Horn
Frank Gawl – Trumpet
Walter Gibson – Tuba
Larry Gareau – Trumpet
David Kayser – TrombonePIANO 4 HANDS Sunday, February 12, 2017, 3:00 p.m. Trinity On Main, New Britain
This piano 4 hand performance of Camille Saint-Saens’ “Carnival of the Animals” includes the verses of Ogden Nash and the artistic drawings of young music students will provide an entertaining and energetic experience.

Floyd Higgins – Piano
Lan-Ya Huang – Piano
Mary Anne Nunn – Narrator

BEATLES STRING QUARTET (ENCORE) Wednesday, March 29, 2017, 6:30 p.m New Britain Public Library
The songs of the Beatles are considered to be music reflecting the desires of a generation that continues to inspire. This performance of Beatles music will be performed in special arrangements for string quartet by the NBSO’s own Fab Four.

JAZZ QUARTET ENSEMBLEWednesday, April 5, 2017,6:30 p.m. Peck Memorial Library, Berlin
Jazz is the fusion of many different African-American styles of music that have evolved to become America’s contribution to the world of music. Come take your seat and immerse yourself in the culture of cool and soothing music.

STEEL DRUM ENSEMBLE Sunday, July 9, 2017, 3:00 p.m. New Britain Museum of American Art
Come and enjoy a musical sampling of Caribbean pan music. This music is from the heart and soul of the islands, and its rhythms will their way to your feet. Come and listen, if you dare.

The New Britain Symphony Orchestra has announced its 2016-2017 concert season. This year’s programming includes two main stage full symphonic concerts as well as a series of seven “mini-concert” ensemble performances.

The season will formally open on Sunday, November 20th, in Central Connecticut State University’s Welte Hall at 3 p.m., with the first of two main stages concerts, “…To Freedom”. The program for this concert includes a number of pieces celebrating the American experience, including “Liberty Fanfare” by John Williams, Dvořák’s “From the New World” Symphony, and the world premiere of American Composer Competition winner Albert Hurwit’s “Are There Still Bells”, a new piece inspired by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow’s poem “Christmas Bells”.

The second main stage concert, an “All Brahms Festival”, will also be performed in Welte Hall on May 7, 2016, at 3 p.m. This concert commemorates the 120th anniversary of the composer’s death. Tickets for both of the main stage concerts are $20 for adults and free for students. Free tickets are offered through local non-profit organizations to area citizens who could not otherwise afford to attend the main stage concerts.

Additionally, the symphony will be offering a free mini-concert series that showcases orchestra musicians in smaller, more intimate settings. Seven ensembles will be presented in small venues such as libraries, churches, and museums in New Britain, Berlin, and Plainville. At these concerts, the musicians perform and engage the audiences in dialogue about music and the instruments of the orchestra, providing unique musical experiences for all ages. Programs for this year’s series include a Beatles string quartet, the annual brass quintet and pipe organ, and a steel drum ensemble.

Annually, the New Britain Symphony Orchestra presents a free full symphonic concert for all fifth grade students from New Britain, Plainville, Berlin, and home schooled students. This season’s 20th annual Young People’s Concert will bring the total of young people reached through this unique educational performance to over 30,000. Other outreach programs include the annual Helen Kilduff – Elizabeth Elia juried scholarship, awarded to an area high school senior who has been accepted by an institution of higher learning for the study of music, and seasonal bus trips to music venues in Connecticut, Massachusetts, and New York.

Information on all of the Symphony programs, including a full calendar of events, may be obtained by downloading our brochure, emailing the Symphony office at office@newbritainsymphony.org, or by calling the office at 860-826-6344.

The New Britain Symphony Orchestra Scholarship Committee is pleased to announce that the 2016 recipient of the Helen Kilduff-Elizabeth Elia Music Scholarship award is Alec Rich of Berlin. Mr. Rich is a recent graduate of Berlin High School and has played tuba in the school marching band, concert band, and jazz ensemble. He was selected for the CT All-State Band in both 2015 and 2016. He comes with the highest recommendation as a talented, diligent worker, both academically and musically, and as a valued member and student leader in Berlin High School musical ensembles. This fall he will attend The Conservatory of Music at Oberlin College.

Since 1979, the New Britain Symphony Orchestra has held auditions for the Helen Kilduff-Elizabeth Elia Scholarship of one thousand dollars ($1,000), which is awarded to a high school senior in New Britain, Berlin, or Plainville who has been accepted by an institution of higher learning with a major in music. The scholarship is named for two long time Directors of Music Education in the New Britain public school systems whose contributions to music education during their tenures benefited thousands of New Britain students.

This year, through the generosity of Martha Moses, a scholarship for students currently studying music at the college level was also awarded for the first time. This scholarship was awarded to Danielle St. Amand. Since winning the NBSO Helen Kilduff-Elizabeth Elia Music Scholarship in 2013, Ms. St. Amand has been pursuing a degree in Music Education at Keene State College. In addition to her plan to teach music, she intends to continue to make music as a professional musician. During her college career she has been chosen to perform first flute in the New England Intercollegiate Band, participate in the American Choral Directors Association, serve on the executive board of the Keene State chapter of the National Association for Music Education, and serve as Treasurer of the Keene State chapter of the Music Teachers’ National Association. Mrs. Moses, the mother of a previous Kilduff-Elia Scholarship winner, created this scholarship in conjunction with the New Britain Symphony Orchestra specifically to assist current college students as they face the growing costs of their higher education.

The New Britain Symphony Orchestra will be wrapping up its 2015-2016 Concert Season on May 1st with the spring concert Singing Strings, a full symphonic production featuring guitarist Daniel Salazar. NBSO Conductor and Music Director Ertan Seyyar Sener has put together an outstanding program to highlight the sounds of the classical guitar in a symphonic setting, choosing works by composers such as Heitor Villa-Lobos and Juan Crisostomo Arriaga among others.

Daniel Salazar / Steven Laschever Photography

This will be Daniel Salazar’s first performance with the New Britain Symphony Orchestra. Salazar has been performing in Connecticut, as well as nationally and internationally, for many years. Since 1993, he has been the featured artist in Hartford’s Guitar Under The Stars. Not only a performer, Salazar has also contributed two arrangements for the concert; one each from composers Isaac Albeniz and Ernesto Lecuona.

Singing Strings will take place Sunday, May 1st, at 3:00 P.M. at Central Connecticut State University’s Welte Hall. Tickets are $20 for adults, while children are admitted for free and students can show a school ID for free entry as well.

More information about the concert can be obtained by contacting Todd Cheney, Executive Director, at 860-826-6344 or office@newbritainsymphony.org.

Xavier Blackwell-Lipkind, a ninth-grader at West Hartford’s Conard High School, was recognized by the audience following the premiere of his composition, French Coast by Moonlight. The program for the 2016 Young People’s Concert included the premiere of this work. Currently a set drummer and vibraphonist in the Jazz Ensemble at Conard High and a percussionist in the Greater Hartford Youth Wind Ensemble, Blackwell-Lipkind has been studying music since the age of four and began composing music while in the fifth grade.

You can see NBSO performing Xavier’s composition by clicking here. Special thanks to Smart is Cool for providing the link to this performance. The vision of “Smart Is Cool” is to celebrate the wide range of abilities in young people and to increase appreciation for their unique areas of intelligence by holding events to showcase the diverse areas of intelligence in young people and supporting young people utilizing their unique intelligence to create and implement projects/programs with the purpose of contributing to their communities and the world.

Tradition | Community | Music

The mission of the New Britain Symphony Orchestra is to perpetuate the rich tradition of live symphonic music by presenting concerts of a high caliber performed by a professional orchestra, and to provide related education and enrichment activities, thereby contributing to the quality of life for people of all ages and ethnicity in Central Connecticut.